Better With You
by tumblr.food.BTR
Summary: Riley rekindles her friendship with Carlos after years of separation. Little does he know she's been in love with him all this time.
1. Chapter 1

I met Carlos Roberto Pena, Jr. when we were both fourteen. We were freshman, we got to know each other, and we became great friends. He helped me through my hardships, as did I with him. He was my best friend. He knew everything about me.

We graduated and drifted apart. He did good for himself, and now he's a celebrity, performing with a not-so-little band called Big Time Rush. Little does he know I've been in love with him since I was a naive little underclassman.

I still remember when he carried my books for me when I broke my arm in ninth grade. I still remember when he held me and let me cry when I found out my mom had cancer that same year. I still remember when he threw a surprise party after my mom healed. I still remember when he beat the crap out of my one-time boyfriend for using me for sex and then dumping me in eleventh grade. I still remember when we walked across that graduation stage together. I remember everything. But most of all, I remember when he told me he loved me.

It was during senior year. We were at a party, and he was drunk. He stumbled over to me and said, "Riley, you're my best friend...you know that?" In slurred speech. "And I wanna tell you that I love you." He said before passing out. Yes, it may have been the booze talking, but it didn't matter. I've been replaying that sentence in my head for the last four years.

Years have passed, now I'm 22 years old. I'm an aspiring model, trying to get a break in this messed up business. My life is great, there's just one thing missing. My best friend.

I moved out to Los Angeles today. My agent said it would be a good idea if I wanted a shot in the modeling world. It was difficult leaving all of my friends back in Florida, but it was something I had to do. Here I am sitting in my new apartment on the other side of the country. Everything is so surreal, it's insane.

I decided to explore my new home a bit. I hopped in the rental car and drove aimlessly. As I'm driving around, I see a billboard for Big Time Rush. I wince when I look at Carlos' picture, feeling the pain I've put up with for so long. It's been years, but I can't seem to forget the feelings I had for Carlos. My high school years were good, yet tough at the same time. I watched Carlos get girlfriends, and every time, a part of me died a little. Something I never told Carlos was that I punched his ex-girlfriend in the face. She broke his heart, the least I could do was break her nose.

After driving for about an hour, I finally turn around and head 'home'. Before doing so, however, I went on a coffee run at Starbucks. I was waiting in line when I heard an all too familiar voice whisper, "Riley...?" I turned toward the voice anxiously, and lost my breath. "Carlos..." I said breathlessly. "I can't believe it's you!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi, guys! So this is the 2nd chapter to the Carlos story. I'm not sure if people are interested, so if you could review that would be absolutelywonderfullyamazing and I will love you forever. :D 3 enjoyyy**

"Yeah, Ri! My God...you look amazing!" He said. His words sounded like music to my ears, and the way my old nickname rolled off his tongue practically had my knees buckling underneath me.

"Thanks, Carl! So do you." I used my old humorous nickname for him, attempting to bring back our old memories to him. Before I could even process all that was going on, I felt his arms wrap around me. All the years I've been dreaming of his arms around me were finally coming true. I hugged back eagerly.

"What are you doing in L.A.?" He asked, looking genuinely confused.

"I'm, uh, a model now. I decided to move out here to jumpstart my career." Maybe it was my imagination, but his face seemed to lift a little.

"Well, if you're living here now, we should definitely get together. Here..." He pulled out a sharpie from his pocket and wrote his phone number on my arm.

"I missed you, Carlos." I said before I could think. He smiled shyly.

"I missed you too, Riley. Don't hesitate to call." He gave me another hug and walked off. As soon as I got my coffee I went to my car, slumped in the seat and let out a squeal of excitement. It seems too good to be true, finding him by chance.

I went back to my apartment and found anything to pass the time. I unpacked, made my bed, decorated, cleaned, everything. Finally, i decided enough time had passed to call him. The first three rings seemed agonizingly slow. I held my breath when he finally answered.

"Hello?" He said in a raspy voice, causing a silent swoon.

"Hi Carlos! It's me...Riley...I figured I'd call so you had my number."

"Riley!" He said with obvious excitement in his tone. "Thank you-for calling, I mean. It's been so long...do you have plans tomorrow?" I allowed myself to get excited.

"No. No I don't. Would you...uh, want to come over?" I asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I'd like that." I gave him my address and dropped the phone on the couch. I jumped up and down, screeching and fangirling.

I ran into my newly filled closet and tore it apart looking for the perfect outfit. Something that said "I'm hot, yet cute". I finally found a blue dress with a high neck and flowers on it. It was short enough to be sexy, but the pattern balanced it out for a sophisticated look.

I woke up early the next day; Carlos would be over at noon for lunch. I cleaned, I got dressed, I bought food, and I was finally ready.  
>I heard a knock on the door, and the butterflies began to flutter in my stomach. I smoothed my dress then proceeded to answer it.<p>

Staring back at me was an adorable Carlos with a bright smile, and a bouquet of flowers. "For your new house." He said, handing them over.

I blushed, "That's so sweet, Carlos!" I set them down and invited him in, but not before giving him a hug. It was supposed to be a quick hug, but i was elated when he lingered.

"What smells so good?" He sniffed.

"I made my homemade macaroni and cheese...I know how much you like it so I thought, maybe it would be a good idea..." I rambled on, and he just chuckled.

"Same old Riley Hayward. Man, you haven't changed a bit." He said, making me smile. He rubbed his hands together. "I'm starving! I can't wait to dig in!" With that I served lunch, and he indulged. "Ri, I haven't had macaroni this good in years. Remember that time when you tried to teach me how to make it?" I flashed back to the time when Carlos set the bowl on fire, somehow, and then we're both laughing hysterically.

"I've missed this." I said when the laughing began to die down.

"Me too." He agreed. We talked, laughed, and reminisced about some of our good times. For instance, all the times when we were walking through school and I'd just fall.

"How's your mom doing? I haven't seen you guys in so long..." My heart jumped when I realized he'd been thinking about us.

"She's doing good. The cancer hasn't come back," *knock on wood* "Thanks for asking."

He simply nodded, "So you're a model now..." He seemed somewhat surprised.

"Yeah, I am. Well, I'm working on it. Is that bad...?"

"No, no, I didn't mean it like that! I just mean, you never seemed like the model type." My spirits dropped, and he could tell. "Oh, God, that's not what I meant, Ri! You're absolutely beautiful, I just mean you never seemed interested in that sort of thing."

"Thank you. And, no, I never was. I was scouted in a mall. It was crazy. And now I'm here. I've only done small ads so far, and a couple of fashion shoots, but that's it."

"I see. I doubt you'll have any problem. Look at you..." He said, gesturing to my long, auburn brown hair, green eyes, and slender body. By no means was a a rail, I have boobs and a butt, but I work hard to maintain my toned body.

I blushed deeply. We talked for another hour, and finally he had to go.

"This was really nice." He said while walking out the door. "We have to do this again. I'll definitely call you." He gave me a hug and left. As soon as the door shut, I backed into the door, slid down and sat, too happy to function.


	3. Chapter 3

Carlos called me the next day and invited me to the set of the show. I didn't even bother attempting to hide the excitement in my voice.

"Great. I'll pick you up at seven on my way to work." I could hear the smile in his voice. It's times like this I almost wished I had a girl best friend to talk to. But I didn't. I only needed Carlos in high school. So I called the closest thing I had-my mom.

"Hi Mom!" I chirped.

"Riley! It's so nice to hear your voice! How is L.A. treating you?"

"Better than I thought, Momma. Guess who I ran into."

"Oh, who?" I could tell she was intrigued.

"Carlos! Carlos Pena. I know you remember him!"

"Oh, sweetie! I love that boy! Such a sweetheart. Please tell him I said hello!"

I laughed. "Okay, Momma, I will. I love you."

"I love you, too, baby." With that we hung up. My mom really is my life. I love her more than anything. When she got sick, I literally fell apart. If it wasn't for Carlos holding me together, I don't know how I would have coped.

I went to bed early that night, so I wouldn't be exhausted when I had to wake up a 5:00. What? A girl's gotta do whatever it takes to look good, right?

I woke up the next morning and made sure I looked perfect. I decided to wear dark skinny jeans, a floral, lacy tank top and grey boots. I curled my hair the way Carlos always loved and tried to keep my make up as simple as I could.

My primping was interrupted when I heard a knock on my door. I sprinted to the door and casually opened it.

"Hi Ril-wow..." He trailed off.

"Wha-what's wrong?" I knew the insecurity was evident in my voice.

"Nothing, Riley! It's just...you look amazing." I blushed.

"Thanks." I smiled. "You don't look too bad yourself. Carlos put out his arm and I linked mine to it. "Should I be worried about meeting the guys?" I asked. Truthfully, I was terrified they wouldn't know who I was, that they wouldn't like me.

"Riley there's no need to worry. They're cool guys, and you're a cool girl."

We got to the studio and Carlos showed me around. "This is the hair and makeup department, this is the pool set, and this way is the dressing rooms." He grabbed my arm and walked me over to the dressing rooms. "And this is mine." I looked inside, and it was spotless. I should have known; he's always been a neat person.

"Same old Carlos." I teased.

"CARLOS!" I heard somebody shout from a distance. I looked over and saw it was Kendall.

"Hey man." Carlos said and fist bumped him. Kendall looked at me curiously.

"I'm, uh, Riley. Carlos' fr..." I stumbled.

"Oh, I know who you are, hon. He's been talking about you since I met him." My jaw dropped, then I composed myself and smiled. I never imagined Carlos had still thought about me, let alone_ talked_ about me to his friends.

"Is that so, Carlos?" I teased. He blushed deeply and I giggled. I looked over at Kendall again and we shared an awkward hug.

"Dude, where's James and Logan?" Carlos asked.

"I think they're still in hair and makeup." Kendall replied. Carlos grabbed my hand and walked me over to them.

"Guys, this is Riley." He introduced. I saw James' and Logan's faces fill with recognition.

"So this is the famous Riley." Logan teased.

"You said she was pretty, but dude, she's gorgeous." James said. I blushed and looked away.

"What can I say? She's a model you know." Carlos replied and playfully punched my arm.

"A model? Dude, how could you leave that part out?" Logan slapped Carlos' head.

"Hey, I just found out myself! And OW!" We all laughed.

The four of us talked and bonded, I guess you could say. It was fun-there was a lot of laughing, mostly at my expense, but who cares? It was a great time.

The filming came to a close, and we were free to leave. Carlos seemed tense, but I didn't ask about it.

We got in the car and he hesitated to start it. When I looked at him, his eyebrows were furrowed, which meant he was nervous. He's always done that, like I play with my hands.

"Carlos, what is going on?" I asked suspiciously.

"What?" He tried to act confused. "Nothing." I saw right through him.

"Cut the crap, Carlos. I know you better than you probably think. You can tell me what you're thinking." I said in a pleading tone.

"Fine! You want to know what I'm thinking? I'm thinking about what an idiot I was to ever let you go." I looked at him in shock. I opened my mouth to talk, but he cut me off.

"No. Please, don't say anything. Just let me talk before I lose my guts." I nodded. "You were my best friend and I let you slip away. Do you know how fucking hard I tried to forget about you?" I could feel the tears prick my eyes.

"Well if that's how you feel then maybe I should stay out of your fucking life." I said through my teeth, holding back tears.

"Wha-what? That's not what I mean, Riley, you _know_ that. I don't _want_ to forget about you. It was just easier than admitting how I really feel."

"And what's that?" I asked.

He sighed. "Ri, this is really hard. I've been waiting to say this for years." Carlos grabbed my hand and looked me in the eyes. "I love you. And not just as a friend. I'm _in_ love with you."


End file.
